


Fractured Fractal

by Rina_Calavera



Category: Lego Ninjago
Genre: Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Hurt/Comfort, Interrogation, Loss of Bodily Autonomy, M/M, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Torture, Zane's wiring is messed with
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-07
Updated: 2020-10-06
Packaged: 2021-03-08 04:07:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 6,042
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26869399
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rina_Calavera/pseuds/Rina_Calavera
Summary: Zane’s eyes widened, and he renewed his struggles against the ropes. “D-do not – you can not,”Red eyes gleamed as a hand hovered over his control panel.“I can do whatever I wish.”
Relationships: Morro/Zane (Ninjago)
Comments: 9
Kudos: 42





	1. Whatever I Wish

“Release me, now.”

Zane’s voice miraculously held steady, despite the fear he felt leeching from his core into his limbs.

He was meticulously strapped to a sturdy chair, wrists and ankles lashed with thick rope. More rope held his waist and neck close to the chair’s back, leaving him with little options – even his words had to be carefully measured, as not much air could get to his voice box with his restraints.

“Hmmm,” Jay – not Jay, Jay didn’t have red eyes or that cruel smile – feigned consideration. “No. You,” he tapped Zane’s forehead. “Got info that we need. Now, if you cooperate…” He flashed a toothy smile. “Then we can talk about letting you go. But til then,” he shrugged and jumped to his feet. “No luck.”

Zane steeled himself against the rope. “I will never betray them.” He vowed.

Not-Jay rolled his eyes. “Ugh. You guys are so sentimental.” He turned away from Zane and stuck his head out of the door. “FROSTY! You’re up!” He called. Zane’s eyes widened as he watched himself walk through the door. This Zane was every inch a perfect copy, except for the red eyes and stark white hair. Not-Jay strolled out of the room, calling after the other Zane to “Call me when he’s ready.”

The two nindroids stared at each other for a moment.

The other Zane shifted on his feet. “I was hoping you would be difficult.” He said.

Zane stared at him with cautious eyes. “Why?”

He lifted the corner of his mouth in a smile. “Because with myself, I know how we work. With you,” He stepped forward, grabbing Zane’s jaw and pressing the hidden switch there, opening his chest panel. “I can find out how we do not.”

Zane tried to keep his breathing steady as open air hissed over his power core and circuits. “W-what are you going to do?” He asked. His voice glitched with anxiety.

A cold hand confidently began brushing aside wires and flipping switches. “I am going to do as Jay said. We need information,” Zane jolted as a wire was pulled, and his leg relaxed. “And I am going to get it.”

Zane clenched his hands to keep the trembling at bay. “I-I cannot feel pain from that,” He said. “Discomfort a-and restraint will n-not turn me against my b-brothers.”

His double scoffed. “I am not aiming for ‘discomfort’ or pain.” Another wire pulled, another switch flipped as Zane jerked in the chair. “I am aiming for achieving our goals.” He sat back, a smug smile on his face. “See you after you reboot.”

Zane’s eyes widened, and he renewed his struggles against the ropes. “D-do not – you can not,”

Red eyes gleamed as a hand hovered over his control panel.

“I can do whatever I wish.”


	2. Whatever You Say

**Initiating BootStartup.**

**Starting.**

**Initiating WakeUp.**

Zane blinked awake disoriented.

Memories came flooding back.

The ropes.

The chair.

A hand in his chest, pulling at wires, flipping switches.

A chill settled over him. What had they done while he was asleep?

He flexed his hands, wiggled his toes. He still had bodily control – his thoughts seemed to be his own.

“I am Zane. I was built to protect those who cannot protect themselves. I am a ninja. I have four brothers and a sister.” He breathed out a relieved sigh. His voice was still his. He was okay. Whatever they had done…he was still him. He was okay.

“Goooood morning, Icy!” He blinked at the sudden appearance of Not-Jay. The boy snickered at his startled look. “Oh yeah, your systems might still be a bit laggy. Not rebooting for that long?” He tsked. “For shame, Icy. You gotta take better care of yourself.”

Zane leaned his head back as far as he could from the strange ninja. “What did you do to me?”

“I didn’t do anything. Frosty just made some minor fixes.” Not-Jay paused. “Where were you built?”

“In a hidden lab in the Birchwood Forest.” It came tumbling out, with no thought or pretense. Zane reeled in horror, his fans picking up with a whir. “I did not – how did – why did I,” He looked up at the wide grin on Not-Jay’s face. “What did he do?” He whispered.

“I made minor alterations, as Jay said.” His double abruptly came into view. “Just to make it easier for you to work with us.” He leaned in close. “We would not want to have to resort to anything violent, would we?”

Zane’s heart dropped.

“Please do not,”

“How advanced is Lloyd’s training?”

“He is still a novice, though he is dedicated. P-please stop this,”

His voice was trembling again. Why couldn’t he stop? He didn’t even – he couldn’t even keep the words in, they spilled out like a waterfall no matter how he locked his jaw.

“Where are you located?”

“Do not make me – we keep the Bounty on a rotating location, in constant motion to avoid a sneak attack and preemptively intercept adversaries – stop this, please!”

Frustrated tears well up in his eyes.

“Aw, look Frosty, Icy can’t take it.” Not-Jay’s voice needled at the guilt weighing on Zane’s heart.

“What is wrong, Zane?” The other nindroid asked mockingly. “You are only fulfilling your programming, are you not?”

Zane fought to keep the answer from spilling over his tongue, but it stubbornly barreled out. “I am breaking my p-programming. I was meant to protect, and now I am b-breaking that code.”

Other-Zane tsked. “For shame, then. You must be defective.”

Zane shook his head. “Y-you did this,” He stammered. “Y-you, you did something,”

His double shrugged. “We just did what was already allowed within your systems. Your father must have,”

Zane’s head shot up with angry tears. “My father would never want this! He wanted me to be good, to be a light!”

Other-Zane sneered. “If he wanted you to be so good, he would not have left such wide holes in your security systems.”


	3. Wherever You Are

“Where is he?” The Bounty was a hub of activity, Nya typing away at the console, while Jay had every scanner he owned out on deck. Cole was watching security footage with an eagle eye, while Kai was sharpening weapons at a breakneck pace. Black shoes marched into the main command center. Cole stood to meet their new arrival.

“You gotta calm down,”

Morro shook his hand off of his shoulder. “Don’t you dare, Brookstone, you’ve done enough!” He turned to Jay. “Tell me you’ve found him.”

Jay squawked as a sudden gust threatened to topple one of his more delicate instruments. “I’m working as fast as I can, but I can only work within reason – if they have him somewhere underground or lead-lined, then these are basically useless.” Morro seethed, and Jay scrambled to reassure him. “But they’re still powerful! Zane’s power core leaves a subtle trail, so we are making progress.” He let out a nervous laugh. “Slow progress.”

Cole stepped forward again. “We’re trying, Morro.”

“You’re failing.”

“We’re trying,” he repeated. “Were you able to find anything?”

Morro huffed in frustration. “No. Apparently, no one notices when a freaking nindroid gets jumped while holding enough groceries to feed an army.” He paced angrily on deck. “No one saw anything! Hell, I don’t think anyone would have noticed if we weren’t here!” His pacing sped up, small dust devils swirling up and further terrorizing Jay’s scanners. “He’s only saved their butts a million and one times, lousy, ungrateful,”

Nya wandered down to the deck. “How’s he taking it?”

Cole gave her a dry look and gestured towards the pacing wind elemental. “Frankly better than I hoped.”

Wu hadn’t mentioned he had an adoptive son, much less that he was the same general age as the ninja. The first time Morro had come home for a visit, the four boys had assumed he was an intruder, and reacted as such, only to get thoroughly thrashed by the prodigious wind master. Once the relation was explained, Morro had started staying around more often. The boy was brash, stubborn, and had a vindictive streak, but he was loyal to a fault and his skills were undeniable.

Not to mention how well he got along with Zane.

“Is Zane gonna be okay?”

They both looked down in surprise at Lloyd. The ten-year-old had been below deck for most of the day, opting to read comics and stay out of the way instead of his usual training.

Cole ruffled his light hair. “He’s gonna be fine, buddy. We just need to find him – he’s a strong guy.”

Lloyd frowned, still uneasy. “This isn’t like when the serpentine grabbed me.” He murmured. Cole frowned, at a loss for words.

Nya gave Lloyd a sympathetic look, putting an arm around his shoulder. “You’re still a kid, Lloyd. Zane’s a trained ninja, and the master of ice. Even if we don’t get a lock on him, he could still break himself out and be back by dinner.”

Jay’s voice interrupted their reassurances.

“I got something!”

~~~

Zane was slumped in his chair, alone. The room was silent, his captors long gone. His head hung forward, form held up only by the ropes holding him in place. The lights were off, leaving just the soft glow from his eyes, lighting up slight tear tracks down his cheeks.

The tears had long since stopped.

He didn’t have any more left in him, literally.

His chest panel was still open, his core glowing out to the open room. He’d closed his eyes, refusing to see the damage his bizarro self’s handiwork. He wouldn’t even know where to begin to fix it anyway.

He felt sick.

He’d told them everything.

How – how could he have – 

You must be defective.

Was he? Was it true? There was nothing – he had no way to stop them. Surely a properly working nindroid would have been able to stop them, right? Would have been able to keep their hands away, would have been able to block such simple overrides.

He even – he let out a sob. He’d told them about Morro. Told them everything – things he hadn’t told anyone else. Things he hadn’t even admitted to himself yet.

And worse…he couldn’t even warn them. The bizarros could be preparing an attack on the Bounty, and the others would never even know. He didn’t have his comm, didn’t have his emergency beacon. They’d taken his tracker, disabled his inner GPS…unless he got out of this himself, they…they’d never find him.

A small voice wondered if that wasn’t for the best. If maybe…maybe he didn’t deserve to get out. To find them.

Would they even want him back?

He’d betrayed them.

He’d betrayed every single one of them – what if someone got hurt? What if Lloyd got hurt?

It’d be all his fault.

A team needed to trust in one another. Who could trust him after this? Would they even believe that he hadn’t wanted to tell them?

He wasn’t – they hadn’t even hurt him in the slightest. Any of the others – they’d need to threaten, to hurt, to coerce somehow…but a few flipped switches and he just…rolled over. Gave them everything they asked. Words, information, weaknesses, spilling out without any resistance whatsoever.

He couldn’t even keep his mouth shut, let alone tell them lies.

There was no way the others would let him stay.

He was already different, being a nindroid. Now it was clear he wasn’t just different, he was a liability. One glitch, one wrong hand in his core…and it all fell apart.

Maybe he should just stay here. Alone. He was a nindroid – it wasn’t like isolation or inactivity would be painful or detrimental in any way. He was circuits and wiring; no psychological or physiological needs to attend to.

Maybe it should be.

To make up for it all.

He’d been alone before.

He could be alone again.

He should be alone again.

If he was alone he couldn’t hurt anyone.

A clang brought his head up.

“Zane? Zane!"


	4. Whatever We Can

A chill raced down Cole’s spine when they landed.

The warehouse was completely abandoned; tire tracks in the dirt suggested someone had been there at some point, but they were long gone by the time the Bounty arrived. Jay’s scanners had picked up the faintest of traces of Zane’s unique energy signature, several miles outside of Ninjago City.

Standing outside of the dilapidated building, Cole hoped it wasn’t too faint.

The warehouse itself only got eerier as they walked in. Dust and dirt covered the place, any metal taken by looters; anything left behind covered in a layer of rust and decay.

Drag marks on the floor made his stomach flip.

None of the lights overhead worked; their flashlights cast long shadows everywhere they looked. It set him on edge, making him see red eyes in the dark.

It wasn’t until they were nearly halfway in that he heard the muttering.

Zane was not a mumbling man. He spoke clearly, with proper enunciation and impeccable straightforwardness. It made him amazing at press releases and business meetings, and horrible at team party games.

But there was no mistaking the subtle reverb in that voice. The low ring he’d always chalked up to a unique vocal tone. There was no mistaking Zane’s voice.

To hear it so quiet was unnerving.

“Zane?” He called. Only an echo replied. The muttering stopped. Cole’s heart sank.

He would have walked right past the room if Morro hadn’t grabbed his sleeve. The door was shut, and the blue glow creeping out under it was only just there – so faint as to be erased when he shone his flashlight on it. His heart pounded in his ears as he slowly opened it.

The sight in that room would haunt him.

“Zane!”

Morro pushed past him, immediately moving to the nindroid. “Zane?” Cole had never heard his voice that frantic. “Zane, please, look at me, are you okay? What happened?” Morro was furiously jumping between cradling Zane’s face and pawing at his restraints. Cole stepped forward, moving behind him and cutting them with his dagger. Morro’s hand moved to shut Zane’s panel, and the nindroid jumped to life.

“No – n-no you c-c-can not – no,” He was babbling, thrashing and kicking back away from them. Cole flinched as the chair fell backward, no doubt slamming Zane’s head into the concrete floor at their feet. “No!” He scrabbled backwards into a corner, hands crossed protectively over his still-open panel.

“…n-no…”

Cole’s heart ached for his brother.

Morro stood stunned in front of the overturned chair. “Zane?” He moved forward cautiously. “Zane…please,” He sank to his knees, staying back. “Zane…let me help. I won’t hurt you.”

Cole lowered his flashlight to the floor. “Tin can? Hey, it’s us – it’s friends.” Zane’s eyes were screwed shut as he huddled in the corner. Cole quietly stepped out of the room, leaving Morro to coax the nindroid out of the corner. He put a hand up to his comm.

“Hey guys? We found him…but it doesn’t look good.”

~~~

“Zane…” the voice was low. Quiet. It didn’t have that same tinge of metal that the bizarro had had. It was someone else.

“Zane, please…I’m not going to hurt you.” No. No it was – it had to be a lie. They’d said he wouldn’t be hurt, but they lied they lied to him he was hurting he’d been hurt they’d hurt him –

~~~

Morro took another step back, hands up. Zane was curled smaller than he’d ever thought possible, and his limbs were creaking with the strain. His comm crackled in his ear. “Morro, Jay and Nya are here – they might be able to help.” He reluctantly left the room, Zane still trembling in the corner.

Cole was waiting outside the room. Footsteps echoed around them as Jay and Nya jogged up. “What’s going on?”

Morro opened his mouth to explain, only to deflate. “I don’t know. His panel is open – he won’t let us get close.”

Nya frowned at the answer. “Is there any chance of getting him to calm down enough for us to help him?”

Morro chewed on his lip. “If…I mean…”

Cole shook his head. “I know you want to help him, but you and I both saw him.” He turned to Nya. “He’s not calming down on his own. He’s too keyed up right now.”

Jay and Nya shared grim looks. “Then we’re gonna need your help, big guy.” Jay continued. “And likely yours, Morro. Zane’s a fighter.”

Morro’s stomach rolled. “What are you saying?”

Jay sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. Nya spoke up with a regretful look on her face. “If he can’t calm down long enough for us to help, then we need to knock him out.”

“He’s a nindroid, you can’t just smash him over the head.” Morro flatly argued.

“We know…” Jay winced. “We need to flip his sleep switch.”

Morro sobered. “Oh.”

Soon they were slowly filing into the room, Morro taking a careful lead. “Zane…?” The nindroid’s babbling abruptly stopped. “Zane, we’re here to help you. We just…” He crept forward, with his hands up. “We just need to take a look at your panel.”

Zane’s eyes flashed open, mimicking the glow from his core. “No! I w-will not – no!” He scrabbled to shrink further into his corner, looking desperately between each of the four figures. “D-do not t-touch me!”

Morro winced at the volume of Zane’s glitched protests. “Zane…” Cole pushed past him.

“I’m so sorry Tin Can, but we have to.” He made a grab for Zane’s arm. The reaction was immediate; Zane thrashed and protested in his grip, and Morro had no choice but to dive forward, holding his other arm from his now unguarded panel. “Now!” Cole called.

Jay and Nya jumped forward, Jay scrambling to hold down Zane’s kicking feet while Nya reached into his panel, surgically moving aside wires. “Got it!”

Zane gave a final shudder before going limp, fans slowly whirring down to a slower speed.

Morro let his arm go with a grim look, reaching to close his panel.

“Let’s get him home.”


	5. Whatever Happened?

Morro didn’t know much about wires and code, but he knew the grim looks on Nya and Jay’s faces. The two were sat on either side of Zane, Jay carefully examining his chest panel while Nya was focused on the lines of code reading out on the diagnostic monitor. He himself had to stay back; too many hands in the way would only hinder Zane’s recovery, and he refused to do anything of the sort.

But he couldn’t help the questions.

“What’s wrong with him?”

Jay only narrowed his eyes and continued his mission with a canister of compressed air. Nya swiveled in her chair to face the doorway where Morro lingered. “Surface level? He had a few switches in the wrong place. We’ll need to debrief him – they found the switch that lets him lie and avoid questions, and that’s pretty bad…”

Morro shook his head. “That – you saw him! That’s not just switches flipped wrong!”

“It’s a hard thing to explain,” Nya continued. “I mean…he’s an amazing being, but…” she sighed. “He has some glaring weak spots.” She shuddered. “Imagine if someone could just reach in and effectively flip your memories to ‘off’.”

They all sat in silence, Zane’s whirring fans the only sound.

“I,” Morro looked between the two, where Zane lay on the table. “I just – I want to help him.”

Nya’s shoulders sank as she slouched into her chair. “That’s just it, Morro – I don’t know how much help we’ll be able to give him.”

Morro sputtered. “So what, you’re just going to leave him, in, in what – a robot coma?”

Nya shot him a glare and jumped to her feet. “That is not what I said at all, and you know it!”

“Well it sure sounded like that’s where you were heading!” Morro shot back, taking a step towards her.

Jay jumped between the two. “Whoa – okay, hold on,” He held his hands up between them in an effort to stop the impending hurricane in the workshop. “We all wanna help Zane,” he turned to Morro. “What Nya means is…we’ve already done all we can physically and with his code.” His face fell as he glanced at the unconscious nindroid. “But Zane’s more than code. He’s a person, and he…went through something horrible, that we don’t really have a way to understand.”

He leveled his gaze with Morro. “We’re not gonna leave him offline.”

Morro deflated, anger replaced with concern for the master of ice. “Whatever it takes,” he turned to the two ninja. “Just tell me what he needs, and I’ll do it.”

Jay blinked. “I – okay, uh – okay.” He turned back to Nya. She straightened, still wary of Morro’s outburst. “How soon can we wake him up? Is his code and everything okay?”

She nodded, then let out a frustrated huff. “Unfortunately, he doesn’t have an ‘on’ switch – we’ll just have to flip off the sleep switch and let him wake up on his own.” The three turned to nindroid on the table. “And then…” Nya sighed. “Then we find out what other damage there is.”


	6. Whatever You Need

It was strange, how human a metal face could look.

Not that he hadn’t always considered Zane human. Long before they’d found that old tree lab, Morro knew Zane was one of the most human people he would ever know.

He wasn’t outwardly very emotive. He often had to voice his feelings, instead of letting them show on his face. It made it difficult to be around kids who didn’t know him, but he was good at talking to police and to bystanders. His default expression – the one that he could manage without any thought – was kind and patient.

It was the first thing Morro had noticed about Zane.

Now, he almost looked like a sculpture.

He was still, fans putting in so little effort that Morro couldn’t even hear their usual whirring. His arms lay at his side, one hand plugged into a cord leading to the Bounty’s diagnostic console.

Jay had helped him put a clean shirt on him.

Just something, anything, to protect his chest panel.

“D-do not touch me!”

Zane had never been much of a hugger. Not like Cole or Jay, anyway. He was more of a cook, a gift giver, than someone who gave public affection.

But he never shrugged off a touch. He would wrap Lloyd or Jay in a hug before they ever needed to ask, not because he wanted one but because they would need it. He’d lean into Cole, give him something to hold, because he knew the black ninja needed something to ground himself.

They’d always let him come into the group hugs, the game night wrestling matches, all on his own. They’d never forced him – he joined on his own time and left of his own accord.

He’d never said, “don’t touch me.”

He’d never needed to.

His voice echoed in Morro’s head.

He’d never heard Zane’s voice like that.

Zane’s voice glitched from time to time, when he was emotional in any way. Morro had heard him glitch, rarely – Kai teased that it happened more often after Morro walked out of a room.

It had never had that desperate ring to it.

Morro knew the lack of wind swirling around the ship was unnerving the others. This high up, there was always some breeze or gale to threaten one’s balance on the upper deck.

Ever since they’d brought him back, it was like a bubble of still air surrounded the Bounty.

He didn’t care. Frankly, they should be relieved. He knew Wu remembered those tantrums he used to throw, the ones that caused sandstorms that lasted for hours.

No, he didn’t care at all. The air could hang stock still around them.

He rubbed Zane’s hand in his own.

The air would stay still for as long as he did.

And it wouldn’t move a second sooner.

~~~

The first thing he noticed was that his eyes felt welded shut, they were so heavy.

He kept them closed. 

He hadn’t slept like this in so long…he didn’t want to wake up. Is this what Cole meant when he said, “nap drunk”?

Everything felt heavy…how did ankles feel heavy? Maybe heavy wasn’t the word…

Maybe he needed to stretch. He wanted to stretch his legs. But he felt so heavy…maybe later.

Maybe…

Maybe he just needed to breathe.

He sucked in a deep breath.

The cool air raced into his systems. It chased away the weight holding down his limbs, leaving behind a stiffness from being so still. He slowly exhaled, and opened his eyes.

The weight on his stomach suddenly lifted, and Morro’s bleary head of black hair came into view.

“Wha’ happened?”

Zane smiled at the master of wind. His hair was uncharacteristically tangled, strands curled and bent to his cheeks where he’d been resting. His trademark streak of green had split into random strands, making him look like a pile of grass blades had been dumped on his head. Red creases crossed his forehead, little traitors that announced how long he’d been there, asleep, unmoving.

He looked adorable.

Zane’s smile fell. He looked exhausted.

“What,” he blinked at the sound of his own voice. It sounded awful. Like he hadn’t used his vocal cords in days, after attempting to pull them out through his throat.

Morro seemed to wake up at the sound of his scratchy glitched words. He stared, wide eyed, and Zane wondered for a moment if he’d accidentally electrocuted himself waking up Jay.

“Zane,” He winced. Morro’s voice sounded almost as bad as his. Morro’s face split in a wide smile. “You’re awake!” His face turned up in concern. “How do you feel?”

Zane tilted his head. “I…” he swallowed. “I would like some water, but, I feel fine.” He met Morro’s eyes. Why were they so intense? “Did something happen?”

Morro had a strange look. “I – um. Let me just – I’ll get you some water, just,” He rose to his feet, pausing in the doorway. “Just stay there, okay?” Zane nodded, confused. Morro nodded to himself. “Just stay there – I’ll be right back.”

The master of wind was back in a moment, a glass in his hand. Zane happily took it, quietly sipping as Morro watched.

Zane stopped. He studied Morro’s pinched face. “Something is wrong.”

Morro’s eyes refocused. “What? What’s wrong? Are you okay? Is something – are you hurt?”

Zane’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. “I am fine.” He assured. “I meant with you.” He hesitated. “You seem…off. Did something happen?”

Morro cast his eyes to the floor. “I…Zane…how much do you remember?”

“He’s awake!”

“Morro, why didn’t you tell us? What’s the point of you taking all the Zane shifts if you don’t even let us know he’s up?”

“Zane!”

A rambunctious chorus of voices barged into the room, covering Morro’s uncomfortable expression.

They cut off with a painful sounding scream and a wall of ice erupting around Zane’s medical cot.


	7. Whatever It Takes

Morro shakily looked up from where he’d tried to splay out over Zane. He pulled back, making frozen sheets crackle under his hands. His breath came out in small puffs of fog as he stared at the icy walls around them. They were so thick he couldn’t see any sign of the ninja he knew were on the other side, completely frozen through.

He shifted his focus to Zane himself.

His heart broke.

The nindroid was curled in on himself, arms crossed over his head and knees drawn tight up to his chest. The normally calm master of ice shook uncontrollably, uncharacteristically unsettled.

“Zane?” Morro kept his voice low. “Zane, please, look at me.”

Zane jolted with a gasp. Morro met blue eyes between the gap of his legs. “M-mor-ro?”

Morro shoved down the flinch at Zane’s glitched voice. “It’s me, Zane.” He inched closer to the head of the bed. “Please, it’s okay – I’m here, I’m not going to let anything hurt you.”

He reached a hand for Zane’s shoulder.

The nindroid flinched back, shaking his head. “N-no, no,” He protested. “Y-you ne-ed to l-le-eave!”

Morro shook his head. “Zane, I’m here to help you. What’s wrong?”

Tears streamed down Zane’s face. “Th-they are go-ing to h-h-hurt y-you,” he cried.

Morro gingerly took one of Zane’s hand in his own, revealing his face. “I’m okay, Zane, it’s okay,”

“N-no,” Zane halfheartedly pulled at his grip. “No, th-they are c-c-coming, it is m-m-my f-fault, no,”

“Zane,” Morro soothed. “It’s okay. We’re okay.” He brought a hand up to Zane’s cheek.

The nindroid froze at the warmth.

Morro continued. “We’re okay, Zane, I promise.”

Zane stared at him. His voice came out in a whisper. “I-I t-told them,” he rasped. “I-I told them e-everyth-thing.”

Morro shook his head. “It’s okay, that doesn’t matter.” He searched Zane’s eyes. “But something’s wrong with you. They hurt you.” The tremble in Zane’s hands returned. “Please, Zane, tell me. Let me help you.”

Zane sobbed in his hands. “I-I,” he stuttered.

A hissing sound filled the air, and Morro cursed.

“Zane! Morro!” Zane flinched back into his painfully small position, leaving Morro to grasp at his hands. Cole’s concerned voice was still heavily muffled through the rapidly vaporizing ice. “Are you okay?”

Morro grit his teeth as Zane stiffened. “We’re fine,” he called back. “Just let us be!”

“Are you kidding me right now?” Kai’s angry voice called. “We need to check on Zane!” The tremor in Zane’s hands increased with each word.

Morro tossed a poisonous glare over his shoulder. “Stay. There! I’ve got him!”

“Morro,”

“Please,” he ground out. “Trust me.”

The others stayed silent, and he rubbed his thumbs over Zane’s hands. “Please,” he addressed Zane. “Please let me help you. We just want you to be okay.” He murmured.

“B-but I,”

Morro cautiously moved forward. Zane let his arms fall around him.

Morro’s voice was quiet, muffled by the hug. “I don’t care what they made you tell them. I care about you.”

Zane had slowly relaxed as time went on. The ice walls stayed, except for a slot Morro had convinced him to open for food. The two were curled in a corner of the icy room, blankets and pillows piled under them at Zane’s request. Morro reclined on their plush throne, Zane quietly curled under his arm.

Zane fidgeted around to look at Morro. His face looked troubled.

“What’s wrong?” Morro asked. “Are you okay?”

Zane held his gaze for a moment before darting away. “I am so sorry.”

Morro’s brows furrowed. “You have nothing to be sorry for.” He answered.

Zane’s breath hitched. “I told them. I told them everything.”

Morro held his hand tighter. “Nothing that matters. And even if it did, we wouldn’t care.”

“I care.” Zane quieted with a sniffle. Morro sat with him, running his fingers over the back of his hand.

“We care about you. Not information.”

Zane stiffened. “You should care. I,” His face hardened. “I gave away your secrets. Everyone’s secrets.”

“Zane, what did they do?” Morro sat up. Zane looked up at him from the pile. Morro continued. “You feel so guilty, you’re tearing yourself up, and I know that you wouldn’t do anything like this on your own.” He stared into Zane’s blue LED eyes. “Please, what did they do?”

Zane looked away. “I,” he breathed. “I did not,” He stuttered, tripping over his words. “I c-could not stop,”

Morro rubbed his hand.

“Th-they opened my,”

Morro tensed. Zane’s breathing picked up. “I could not st-top them.” Morro tightened his grip, rubbing his free hand on Zane’s shoulder. “I did not kn-now th-that Father p-put th-that switch th-there.” Zane’s voice broke. “I-I,” He pulled Morro’s hand to his chest.

Morro pulled him in closer. “It’s okay. You’re okay. You’re here, I’ve got you.” Zane leaned into the touch, breath shaky.

“Why would he do that?” Zane whispered; voice rough. “Wh-why, why give me that weak spot?”

Morro was quiet, only holding Zane as the nindroid shook.

“I could n-not even st-stay quiet.” Zane murmured. “All I c-could do, was j-just a-answer.”

“It wasn’t your fault,” Morro whispered back. He rubbed circles into Zane’s arms. “We know it wasn’t your fault.”

Zane gripped at the shirt covering his panel. “I could not stop them.” He twisted the fabric in his hand.

“You shouldn’t have had to.” Morro answered. 

The room was quiet, only Zane’s whirring fans filling the air.

“You shouldn’t have had to…” Morro repeated. His voice hardened. “And you won’t. Ever again.” He sat up, looking at Zane’s questioning tear-stained face. “I promise you.”

Zane was quiet for a moment, staring up at him. “I was alone.” He whispered. “No one knew where I was. How to find me.” He trembled, the tears threatening to spill again.

Morro’s stare was determined. “You’re not going to be, ever again.” He held Zane close to him again. “I swear it.”


	8. Whatever We Want

“I do not want to fear them.”

Zane’s raspy whisper was a knife in Morro’s heart. “I know,” he replied. “We’ll work on it.” He heaved another box onto a shelf.

In the wake of Zane’s initial reaction and following attempts to greet him, they’d realized with heavy hearts that Zane couldn’t bear to be in the same room as any of his three teammates. It had taken some thought and planning, but they’d arranged for him to go to the lab in the Birchwood Forest.

Nya and Jay were outside, setting up communications for Zane to run as a hidden base of operations. Kai and Cole had made sure any structural repairs were made, and Morro had helped Zane pack what little he wanted to on the Bounty.

Cole had tunneled further, creating separate rooms. The hope was that one day this could be a safehouse for all of them. For now, though, it would be Zane’s personal sanctuary.

Now they were here, moving boxes and arranging the now much bigger lab.

Zane sighed and closed yet another drawer full of tools and blueprints. “I should not need this.”

Morro paused in his unpacking. “Zane, you’re allowed to need things. Especially after…that.”

The nindroid looked conflicted. His hand drifted up to his chest to twist his gi in his fingers. “My team needs me.” He murmured.

“Zane.” Morro closed the distance. “Listen to me.” He took Zane’s hands in his and looked up at the nindroid’s guilt-ridden face. “Your team needs you to do what’s best for you. That’s why they’re all here, helping you.” Zane’s blue eyes stared down into Morro’s. “And it’s why they’re setting you up to still help.”

Morro swept his hand over the room. “Look at all of this.”

A large screen dominated the main room. Below it, a keyboard and communications console whirred with life. A smaller display sat waiting for a chat check-in, and a digital map showed the Bounty’s current position on a map of the entire continent.

Morro smiled at Zane. “You’re not abandoning them. You’re going to be protecting them so, so that, doesn’t happen to them.” He paused. “And you’ll be doing it from somewhere you’ll be safe and comfortable. And,” he could feel the flush on his cheeks as he continued. “I’ll be here too.”

Zane’s eyes widened. “What?”

Morro’s cheeks flared. “I, um, well,” He stammered. “Father was worried about you being out here on, uh, on your own.” He turned his stare to the floor. “We couldn’t ask Nya to stay here, and Lloyd’s a kid, so uh,” He sheepishly looked back up at Zane. “So I volunteered.”

The corners of Zane’s mouth twitched. “You will be staying here?”

Morro flushed. “I, yeah – I mean, Cole cleared out several rooms, so I won’t be in the way or anything,”

Zane swept him in a hug. “You would never be in the way.” He stood back suddenly. “But will you not feel tied down? I know you value your nomadic travels.”

Morro smiled up at him. “I think I’ll be just fine here.”


End file.
